2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

Human health promotion by inter-species symbiosis-Mental and physical health development of children by human-dog coexistent of microbiota

Research Project

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Project/Area Number	19H00972
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
Allocation Type	Single-year Grants
Section	一般
Review Section	Medium-sized Section 42:Veterinary medical science, animal science, and related fields
Research Institution	Azabu University
Principal Investigator	Kikusui Takefumi 麻布大学, 獣医学部, 教授 (90302596)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	西田淳志公益財団法人東京都医学総合研究所, 精神行動医学研究分野, プロジェクトリーダー (20510598) 安藤俊太郎東京大学, 医学部附属病院, 准教授 (20616784) 野元謙作獨協医科大学, 医学部, 講師 (30786976) 茂木一孝麻布大学, 獣医学部, 教授 (50347308) 宮内栄治群馬大学, 生体調節研究所, 准教授 (60634706) 永澤美保麻布大学, 獣医学部, 准教授 (70533082)
Project Period (FY)	2019-04-01 – 2023-03-31
Keywords	思春期コホート / 腸内細菌叢 / 向社会性 / 内分泌 / 心尺度 / イヌ飼育
Outline of Final Research Achievements	A life-log investigation was conducted to examine the long-term changes in human-dog coexistence. The results revealed various factors such as physical activity, endocrine responses, and gut microbiota, shedding light on the evolving dynamics and their impact on both humans and dogs. Particularly, correlations were found between the physical activity levels and oxytocin values of dogs and their owners, as well as their psychological measures. Furthermore, an examination of the effects of dog ownership on children demonstrated certain differences between the dog-owning group and the control group in the measured variables. It was also discovered that the gut microbiota could be involved in some of the effects of dog ownership on human well-being. While further research is needed, the potential benefits of dog ownership on human physical and mental health have been suggested.
Free Research Field	動物行動学
Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements	本研究ではイヌの飼育によるヒトの心身の健康への影響を、運動、睡眠リズム、内分泌変化、腸内細菌叢と心尺度から調査した。その結果、思春期の飼育児童のWell-Beingが向上し、その背景にオキシトシンやコルチゾールの変化を伴っていることを見出した。またイヌ飼育の思春期児童の細菌叢を無菌マウスに投与しノトバイオートマウスを作成したところ、向社会行動の増加を認め、イヌ飼育の影響の一部は細菌叢の変化を介したものであることが示唆された。これらの結果は、先進国で最低に近い思春期児童のWell-Beingの向上に向けた科学的視点に資するものとなった。